


Baby Giraffes & Overheated Spider-Kids

by Marvelous_Writer



Series: Day in the life of the Iron Family [6]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: April the giraffe - Freeform, Dehydration, Fainting, Fluff, Gen, Giraffes, Happy Hogan is a Good Bro, Humor, Parent Pepper Potts, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker Whump, Poor Peter Parker, Precious Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe), Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Trip to the Zoo, Uncle Happy Hogan, Whump, Zoo, drink your water kiddies, heat exhaustion
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-20
Updated: 2020-04-20
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:00:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23747974
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marvelous_Writer/pseuds/Marvelous_Writer
Summary: In which Peter faints during a family trip to the zoo.(Alternate title: Too Hot, Hot Damn)
Relationships: Happy Hogan & Morgan Stark, Happy Hogan & Peter Parker, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Pepper Potts & Morgan Stark (Marvel Cinematic Universe) & Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Series: Day in the life of the Iron Family [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1438015
Comments: 42
Kudos: 421
Collections: Irondad and his Iron kids





	Baby Giraffes & Overheated Spider-Kids

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you [whumphoarder](https://whumphoarder.tumblr.com) and [xxx-cat-xxx](https://xxx-cat-xxx.tumblr.com) for beta reading!!
> 
> Bethany, you’re a saint for putting up with me ❤️

“So where should we go next? Lions, zebras or giraffes?” Tony asks as they come to a stop in front of the sign displaying the zoo’s map. 

“Giraffes!” Morgan exclaims excitedly from her spot on Tony’s shoulders. “I want to see April and her baby!” 

Grinning, Tony continues along the crowded pathway. “Giraffes it is then.” 

Happy is bringing up the rear with Peter, carrying the day bag Pepper had packed for them. “We have a two-thirty reservation at the Rainforest Cafe, so we only have enough time to visit one more exhibit after.” 

“I heard one of the hippos just had a baby last week. I think they’re near the alligators,” Pepper says. 

Morgan lets out a small gasp. “A baby hippo? Can we go?” 

Pepper glances at her smart watch. “If we have enough time.” 

The four of them continue moving through the hoards of people toward the enclosure. They’ve been at the zoo for well over three hours now, going from exhibit to exhibit. Morgan seems to be thoroughly enjoying herself, especially when they stopped at the petting zoo where she was able to hand-feed the farm animals. One of the goats even tried to knock Tony over by ramming into his legs from behind. 

Peter on the other hand… wasn’t having the best time. The hours of walking around in the sun on a sweltering July day have really taken a toll on him. He’s exhausted, his feet are killing him, and all he wants to do is call it quits and go back to the car, turn the AC on full blast and fall asleep until they get back home. But this is Morgan’s day, and Peter is going to suck it up for her. She’s been looking forward to their day at the zoo all week and he isn’t about to ruin it for her. 

When they finally reach the giraffes paddock ten minutes later, they’re met with a horrifyingly long line at the feeding station. 

“I can’t see the baby,” Morgan complains from Tony’s shoulders. 

Tony peers through his sunglasses around the crowd. “She might be inside the barn.”

Peter wishes he thought to bring his own along—not that they would help much right now. 

“Can we feed them?” Morgan asks. 

Tony looks over at the line. “We can… but we might not have enough time to see the baby hippo.”

Morgan hums in thought as she looks back at the giraffes. “Giraffes,” she decides after a few seconds. 

Peter resists the urge to groan, wishing that they could just skip the rest of this and head to the restaurant to get out of this heat wave. But it’s Morgan’s day, so it’s her call what they do and Peter is going to go along with it. 

“It’s not everyday you get to feed a giraffe, right, Pete?” Tony asks, looking back at him as they step in line. 

“Yeah,” Peter agrees with a tired smile. 

Happy on the other hand, doesn’t seem too thrilled. “You don’t think they bite do you?” he asks warily. 

Pepper seems to ponder the question. “Well… I’m sure they’re used to visitors coming here and feeding them,” she reassures. 

“I don’t know… animals are unpredictable, especially _exotic_ ones,” Happy grumbles. 

Tony turns to him with a raised brow. “Are you telling us you’re afraid of these things?” 

“No!” Happy retorts. “I’m just worrying about Morgan getting up close to them.”

Tony nods, his lips spreading into an amused grin. “Oh yeah, _sure,”_

When Tony turns back around, Happy shoots a glare at the back of his head, causing Peter to huff out a short laugh. 

“We can sit this one out if you want,” Peter offers, turning to him. 

“You sure?” Happy asks. “It’s not everyday you can get up close and personal with one of these things.” 

Peter nods. “Yeah, I’m sure.” The sooner they can get out of this line and find somewhere nice and shady to sit, the better. 

Happy nods and turns to Tony, tapping him on the shoulder. “Pete and I are going to walk around for a bit while you guys do this,” he says. 

Morgan pouts at that. “You don’t want to feed the giraffes?” she asks disappointedly. 

“Not today, but you have fun,” Happy says with a gentle smile. He turns back to Tony. “Call me when you guys are done and we’ll meet you back here.” 

Tony lets out an overly-dramatic sigh. “Alright… but you guys are missing out…” 

Happy rolls his eyes as he turns away, lightly nudging Peter’s shoulder. “Come on.” 

They both step out of line and continue down the crowded pathway. Peter squints in the harsh sunlight, only adding to the headache that’s been steadily worsening since noon. It feels like a fog has settled over his brain, making it hard to think. 

“So what do you want to do to kill some time? We can head over to the hippos and take a few pictures of the baby for Morgan?” Happy suggests. 

Peter nods as he wipes a hand across his sweaty forehead. “Yeah… she’d like that.”

“I’m just not sure where the exhibit is. Maybe they have one of those maps around here. I knew I should have grabbed one back in the gift shop…” Happy trails off, his voice becoming lost as Peter’s ears start to ring. 

He feels lightheaded and breathless all of a sudden, like the hot air is weighing him down, making him even more exhausted than he already is. “Uh, can we… can we stop for a sec?” Peter asks as he looks up, finding that Happy is now walking quite a few steps ahead of him, typing something into his phone. 

“Yeah,” Happy says distractedly. He slows his pace, oblivious to Peter’s distress. “I’m trying to pull up the zoo’s mobile map but I can’t get on their WiFi…” 

Black dots dance across Peter’s field of vision as a rush of heat washes over him. He sways, struggling to keep his heavy legs moving. Happy’s figure grows more and more blurry as the seconds pass by. 

Peter licks his dry lips. “H-Happy?” he mumbles, blinking sluggishly. “I… I don’t feel so good…” 

That seems to get Happy’s attention. “Huh?” He stops, turning around to face Peter with a frown. 

That’s when Peter’s legs suddenly decide to give out underneath him, the ground rushing up to meet him. He’s barely aware of the pair of hands that catch him under his arms, saving him from face-planting against the asphalt before he passes out. 

...

The next thing Peter’s aware of is someone tapping his cheek. 

_“...c’mon, Pete wake up…”_ someone says. Their voice is a bit muffled, kind of like they’re underwater, but that doesn’t make sense. It’s so hot — there can’t be any water around.

Peter groans as feeling starts to come back to him. His head is swirling and pounding and he’s so _hot_ , despite the thin t-shirt he’s wearing. He manages to open his eyes, only to find Happy kneeling over him, his eyes wide and panicked. 

“Did I pass out?” Peter mumbles. 

“Yeah, you did,” Happy says. “How are you feeling?” 

“Really dizzy… tired,” Peter answers, suddenly very aware of the people that have started congregating around them. 

“Think you can sit up?” Happy asks. 

Peter nods sluggishly. “Yeah.” 

Happy helps him sit up and Peter has to shut his eyes tightly against the lightheadedness he’s met with from the change in position. After a few minutes, Happy helps him to his feet, keeping a firm hand on Peter’s arm as he leads him over to a thankfully empty bench in the shade under a tree. 

Happy eases him down on the wooden bench before standing back up and looking around. “I’m going to get you some water,” he says, glancing back at Peter. “Stay here. There’s some right over there,” he says, pointing to a vendor across from them that has a long line in front. 

Peter nods. He leans forward, arms resting on his knees as he hides his face in the crook of his elbow to shield his eyes from the light. 

Happy comes back not even three minutes later, two water bottles in hand, and Peter doesn’t want to know how he managed to skip that line. Peter slowly sits up a bit, arms still braced on his knees. He winces as a sharp pain shoots through his right temple. 

Happy unscrews the cap from one of the bottles and hands it to him. “Small sips,” he instructs as he sits down next to Peter, watching him with concerned eyes. 

Peter takes a few small sips of the icy water, just as Tony suddenly appears. He’s a bit breathless, as though he’s been running. 

“Happy called. Are you alright?” Tony gasps out as he crouches down in front of Peter. 

Peter closes his eyes and shakes his head slowly. “Feel like hot garbage,” he mumbles. 

“I’m sorry, bud,” Tony says sympathetically. He takes off his sunglasses and slips them onto Peter, causing the boy to sigh in relief. “I think we’re just gonna just order some food and eat it in the car on the way home.” 

“I’ll put an order in at the cafe,” Happy says as he stands up. He hands Tony the other water bottle before stepping away to make the call. 

“Did you get to feed the giraffes?” Peter asks as Tony sits down next to him. 

“Nah, but Pep and Morgan are over there now,” Tony says. 

“Maybe we can make it back in time before they’re done?” Peter says as he tries to stand up from the bench, ignoring the way his vision swims a bit. 

Tony stops him by gently grabbing his arm, keeping him seated. “It’s alright, Pete. There’s always next time. Besides, I’ve got my own hungry kid to feed.”

“But-”

Tony shakes his head. “No buts about it. You just _fainted_ and you need to take it easy.” He uncaps another water and hands it to him. “And keep yourself hydrated.”

Peter sighs, but he takes the bottle anyway. “Okay,” he mumbles before taking a sip. 

They sit there for a few minutes, just watching the people passing by. Eventually Happy finishes his phone call and walks over to join them. 

“The food’s all ordered—should be ready by two-thirty,” Happy says as he stops in front of them. He looks worriedly at Peter. “You feeling any better?” 

“A little,” Peter says. His head still hurts and he feels a bit shaky (probably due to the fact that he really didn’t eat much at lunch), but mostly he’s tired. 

“That’s good. I almost had a heart attack when I saw you drop,” Happy says, taking a seat beside Tony on the long bench. “I think the heat might’ve gotten to you.” 

“Yeah,” Peter agrees as he leans forward, resting his arms on his legs as he lazily sips at the water. “Don’t really know what happened.” 

“Well, I texted Pep and told her where we are. She and Morgan are almost done, so when they find us we’ll head to the car so we can get you out of this heat,” Tony says, glancing up from his phone to look at him with worried eyes. “I’ll even let you sit in the backseat and eat while you watch Star Wars if you want,” he offers with a small grin. 

Peter smiles at the offer. “That sounds good,” he says, even though he knows he’ll probably end up passing out before the opening credits roll. 

Several minutes later, Pepper and Morgan arrive, spotting them almost instantly. 

“Petey!” Morgan shouts as she runs over, practically dragging Pepper after her. “We heard you weren’t feeling good, so we got you this!” She holds a fluffy giraffe stuffed animal out to him. 

Peter smiles tiredly at her as she hands it to him. “Awe, thanks, Mo,” 

Tony smiles. “That was very nice of you two,” He says as he helps Peter stand up from the bench. “Now, lets head back to the car so we can all get out of this heat.” 

“Amen,” Happy groans, pushing himself up. 

…

Thirty-five minutes later (including a ten minute search for the car), Peter is sitting in the backseat with the AC on full blast, snuggled up with his new giraffe plushie and almost half asleep while _101 Dalmatians_ plays on the small built-in TV. 

The car is silent, except for the sounds of the movie and the highway as they drive, but it’s soothing, lulling him to sleep. Peter blinks slowly as he leans back against the headrest. His gaze shifts to the front when he sees Tony raise a hand from the wheel to adjust the rearview mirror. He smiles softly at Peter when their eyes meet. The corners of Peter’s mouth lift into a small, tired smile in return before Tony looks back at the road. 

Peter’s eyes drift over to the window, watching the world go by in a blur as his eyelids get heavier. Eventually he gives in and lets them drift shut, feeling safe and content, knowing that Tony will get them home safely. 

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know your thoughts!! If you’d like to see more, come find me on tumblr at [marvelous-writer](https://marvelous-writer.tumblr.com)


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